


Connections

by ariel2me



Series: March to Winterfell [3]
Category: A Song of Ice and Fire - George R. R. Martin
Genre: Gen
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2013-08-07
Updated: 2013-08-07
Packaged: 2017-12-22 17:10:20
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 886
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/915857
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ariel2me/pseuds/ariel2me
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>“And what of you, my lady? You will take Ser Justin’s goodwill and his favors, without any intention of accepting him,” Stannis pointed out.</p>
<p>“I am already wed, Your Grace.”</p>
<p>“To an old man you had no wish to wed, I hear. Your nuncle forced you into that marriage.”</p>
<p>“And will you force me into a marriage with Ser Justin, to bring the Iron Islands to heel?” Asha’s gaze was a dare, a challenge.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Connections

“Your Grace?” Justin Massey’s voice interrupted Stannis’ contemplation of his long-gone goshawk.

“What?” Stannis barked out impatiently.

“I was requesting permission to be excused, Your Grace. To escort LadyAsha back to her tent,” Justin Massey replied, smiling his persistent smile that irritated Stannis greatly.

_Escort._  As if she was an honored guest instead of a prisoner. Massey’s way of currying favor with the supposed heir of the Iron Islands, no doubt. Massey would do anything for land and a lordship, Stannis knew.

And yet, the disquieting thought struck Stannis suddenly, Asha Greyjoy had accepted the peach from Justin Massey with a smile. Had listened to Justin’s tedious ramblings about his goshawk with pretend interest and sympathy.She was playing her own game too.

_Now who is manipulating whom, Justin?_

In a battle of wills and trickery between those two, Stannis had no doubt who would be the victor. The thought enraged him. She had no right. A prisoner, trying to play games with her captors. To what end? Merely to ensure a better treatment, or was she planning something more devious?  

“Leave us, ser. I would like a word with the prisoner,” Stannis announced. For once, Justin Massey was struck dumb. The smile left his mouth; instead it was left hanging open in amazement.

“What are you waiting for? Leave. Now.”

“At once, Your Grace,” Justin Massey replied, but his gaze lingered on Ashaas he made his way out of the dining tent. If Stannis did not know any better, he would have said that Massey looked almost concerned for Asha Greyjoy.

Asha’s gaze did not linger on the smiling knight who was no longer smiling. Instead, her eyes were fixed on Stannis. She was scrutinizing him in a way that he found most improper. Improper for any woman, let alone one who was his prisoner.

“Has Ser Justin upset you in any way, Your Grace?” Asha spoke beforeStannis did. Another black mark against her. Stannis took mental notes of that.

“What games are you playing, my lady?” Stannis asked brusquely.

Asha raised her eyebrows. “Games, Your Grace?” She sounded genuinely puzzled.

“With Ser Justin. Do you think you can entice him into releasing you? It is futile, my lady. Ser Justin cares not for you, only for your land and title, and he cannot have that if you are a free woman,” Stannis replied.

_And Alysane Mormont is a more reliable and dependable guard_ , Stannisthought. Not for any love or deep loyalty for Stannis or his cause, but due to the long-standing enmity between the Mormonts and the Greyjoys.

“I am well-aware of Ser Justin’s … reasons,” Asha said calmly. “Still, he is the only one who might object if your men try to burn me for your hungry red god. I owe him my regard if only for that. Would you have me treat him with disdain, Your Grace?”

Her candor stupefied Stannis. He had expected her to prevaricate, dissemble, to feign naivety or innocence. His mind quickly reassessed the woman sitting in front of him.

_She is proud, this one_.  _She might have bended the knee, but not because she is afraid of death, only so she could live to fight another day._

Fighting another day for Asha Greyjoy no doubt meant burying an axe inStannis’s skull. In Justin’s skull as well?

“If Ser Justin objects to your burning, it is not for the reason that you might think.” Why was he repeating the same point he had made earlier? Her refusal to cease staring at him was very, very unsettling.

Asha laughed, a short, harsh bark that was unlike the sound of any woman laughing Stannis had ever heard. “Why, Your Grace, I would never have taken you for someone with …  _romantic notions_ ,” she said.

_Romantic notions?_  The woman was deliberately testing his patience.

Again, she spoke before Stannis did. “I am not a foolish, naïve girl, Your Grace. Ser Justin does not love me, nor does he lust for me. I am well-aware of that. He wants to rule the Iron Islands in my name, that is the only reason why he would want to ensure that I live.”

_Love?_ _Definitely not. Lust, on the other hand …_

Justin Massey had not been Robert’s squire for nothing.

“And what of you, my lady? You will take Ser Justin’s goodwill and his favors, without any intention of accepting him,” Stannis pointed out.

“I am already wed, Your Grace.”

“To an old man you had no wish to wed, I hear. Your nuncle forced you into that marriage.”

“And will you force me into a marriage with Ser Justin, to bring the Iron Islands to heel?” Asha’s gaze was a dare, a challenge.

“You are my prisoner! It is not your place to question me,” Stannis spat out the words through gritted teeth. “Ser Richard, take the prisoner back to her tent.”

Richard Horpe came quickly, looking grim-faced and dour. He was definitely not a smiler. The complete opposite of Justin Massey in many ways.

_Davos could smile and laugh when the situation warrants it, and be completely grave and somber at other times._

Stannis pushed the painful thought of his dead Hand aside. Horpe and Massey were the ones he had left with him; he would have to make the best of the situation.


End file.
